USA > Tennessee > Sketch of Harvey's scouts, formerly of Jackson's cavalry division, Army of Tennessee; a part of the second volume of Claiborne's History of Mississippi > Part 1
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A SKETCH OF HARVEY'S SCOUTS FORMERLY OF JACKSON'S CAVALRY DIVISION, ARMY OF TENNESSEE CLAIBORNE
REYNOLDS I NORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
A SKETCH
HARVEY'S SCOUTS,
FORMERLY OF
JACKSON'S CAVALRY DIVISION,
ARMY OF TENNESSEE.
7. WRITTEN BY
J. F. H. CLAIBORNE,
BEING A PART OF THE SECOND VOLUME OF CLAIBORNE'S HISTORY OF MISSISSIPPI.
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Publishad for Private Distribution,
STARKVILLE, MISS .: SOUTHERN LIVE-STOCK JOURNAL PRINT. 1885.
1.71805
Dawes F 8618 .17
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Claiborne, John Francis Hamtramck, 1800-1884.
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A sketch of Harvey's scouts, formerly of Jackson's cavalry division, Army of Tennessee. Written by J. F. H. Claiborne, being a part of the second volume of Claiborne's History of Mississippi. Published for private distribution. Starkville, Miss., Southern livestock journal print., 1883. 1 p. 1., 24 p. 22mm.
1. U. S. - History-Civil war -- Regimental histories - Miss our. - Harvey's scouts. 2. Mississippi cavalry - Harvey's scouts, 1-62 - 1865. I. Title.
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had devoted to the soldiers of Mississippi, during the late war, is lost to us. This noble man would have done justice to the sons of Mississippi ; those who, amid the storm of conflict-the shriek of shot and shell-held unfurled upon the perilous ridge of battle, the flag of the late Confederacy.
A history of the sons of Mississippi, written by such a man-peace to his ashes-would have been a true his- tory, then our conquerors, for examples of valor, mili- tary skill, and deeds of daring, like the conquerors of Ireland and Poland, could turn to the history of the very people they have crushed and overthrown.
No one will claim for this sketch that it is anything like complete. It is such as was selected by Gen. Clai- borne, out of a considerable amount of material furnished by different persons, and placed at his disposal. It will, it is believed, prove acceptable and interesting to the members of the Company, their families and their friends.
Very Respectfully,
WILEY N. NASH.
Starkville, Miss., January, 1885.
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ARTICLE I.
Weekly CLARION, Wednesday, October 4th, 1882.]
Harvey's Scouts.
The following is a roll of this celebrated Company of Scouts as it stood at the surrender :
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.
ADDISON HARVEY .CAPTAIN.
ROBERT LEE IST. LIEUTENANT.
THOS. LAND, (killed in Georgia.) 2D. LIEUTENANT.
GEORGE HARVEY, (promoted on the death of Lieu- tenant Land.) 2D. LIEUTENANT.
WILLIAM TYSON
JUNIOR 2D. LIEUTENANT.
NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS,
HARRY CAGE COLOR BEAREN.
DR. CABINISS . SURGEON.
SERGEANT JANE Q. M. AND COM. SERGEANT.
R. STANSIL IST. SERGEANT.
T. BATTS 2D. SERGEANT.
. T. NELSON 3D. SERGEANT.
WILEY N. NASH 4TH. SERGEANT.
P. L. JORDON 5TH. SERGEANT.
11. X. PORTWOOD IST. CORPORAL.
R. MCLEMORE 2D. CORPORAL.
J. NELSON 3D. CORPORAL.
FRANK TINNEN 4TH. CORPORAL.
N. B .- Jesse Jordan was also 2d Sergeant until he was seriously wounded and was never able to rejoin his command.
PRIVATES.
ANDERSON, R.
KILGOOR, J.
ARCHIBALD, JAMES
KING, J.
BARROW, JOHN
LAND, A.
BATES, WILLIAM
LAND, THOMAS B.
BLACKBURN, H.
LAMB, JNO.
LIPSCOMB. FRANK.
LEAVELL, JOHN
LOCKETT, GEORGE
LORANCE, JOHN
BIRDSONG, T. BOYER, A. BOLING. G. BOLING, JOHN BRASWELL, D. Mc GEE,
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BREWSTER, W. BURTON, R. CLARK, THOS. COOK, JAMES CARTWRIGHT, M. CARTLETT, J. CHANDLER, JOHN W.
CRAIG, JOHN
CROWDER, JOHN
CAVANAH, W. B.
DAVENPORT, ISSAAC
DAVIS, JAMES DRANE, WESLEY DEASON, R.
DUPREE, G.
. DEGRAFENRIED, W. DEAN, W. . EAKIN, T. ECKFORD, W. ESTES, EVANS, JOHN FIELDS, THOMAS FIELDS, HARRY FIELDS, SCOTT FLOWERS, W.
. FITTS, J. FREEMAN, JOHN GALLOWAY, GEORGE . GARDINER, A. GOODLOE, JAMES GRAYHAM, JOHN HEMMINGWAY, W. HARVEY, J. HAMMAN, THOMAS HARPER, R. HENRY, WILLIAM
HOGAN, JOHN HOLMES, ED. HOWCOTT, W.
HUMES, B. HADDOCK, J. HOOKS, ROBERT JACKSON, W. JONES, T. B. KENNEDY, WALTER
Total, rank and file-128
McDANIELS, S. McBRIDE, WILLIAM MOSBY R. MUSE, B. MYERS, JOHN
MURDOCH, JOHN
MEREDITH. R. MORROW, JOHN MOON, JUNIUS NEILL, HAL.
ODOM, E.
OWENS, E.
OWENS, STEVE PARKS, JAMES
PENDLETON, JOHN
PARSONS, DAVE
PRIESTLY, T. IRIES . Y, W.
PERKINS, W. PENDLETON, GEORGE
REGAN, T. RENFROE, JAMES ROBINSON, CLAY SANDRIDGE, W
SAMPLE, D
SHELBY, GEORGE
SHEROD, B SIEROD, G.
SIMMONS, L. SMITH, LUD. SMITHI, T.
SEE, D. SIRENE, G. SIMMONS, B F TYSON, G. TYSON, JOHN
TUCKER. JAMES TAYLOR, E.
THOMPSON, R WHITEHEAD, THOMAS WILLIAMSON, T T. J WATSON, JOHN TULLIS WOOD, WALLACE WEEMS, J WILSON, M
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LIST OF KILLED.
CAPTAIN ADDISON HARVEY,
Killed in Georgia.
LIEUTENANT THOMAS LAND, Killed in Georgia
ARCHIBALD, JAMES Killed in Mississippi.
. BATES, WILLIAM, Killed in Alabama.
CATLETT, JOHN, Killed in Georgia
DEAN, W., Killed in Alabama.
FIELDS, THOMAS, Killed in Mississippi.
GRAYHAM, JOHN,
Killed in Mississippi.
KILGOOR, J., Killed in Tennessee.
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MORROW, JOHN, Killed in Alabama.
RENTFROE, JAMES, Killed in Mississippi.
TUCKER, JAMES,
Killed in Alabama
Total, 12
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LIST OF WOUNDED.
Captain Addison Harvey, wounded in Mississippi.
Cavanah, W. B., Wounded twice in Geor_i.t.
Hooks, Robert, wounded in Georgia. Humes, Ben., wounded in Georgia .
Jordan, Sergeant Jesse, Wounded in Georgia. Jackson. W ., wounded twice in Georgia. Land, A., wounded twice in Mississippi.
Loraine, John, wounded in Georgia .
Murdoch, John, wounded in Tennessee.
Nash, Sergeant Wiley N., wounded in Georgia Neil, Hal- Owens, E., wounded in Georgia .
Portwood, Corporal H. X .. wounded twice in Georgia
Regan, T., wounded in Georgia .
Stansil, Sergeant R., wounded in Mississippi.
Wood, Wallace, wounded in Geor it. Totol wounded, 16.
Four of the above, to-wit : Cavanah, Jackson, Land and Portwood, were each wounded twice. A. Land was wounded in a close fight with infantry, shot and hayoneted in the same action. John Lorance wounded with a sabre in a fight with cavalry. The wounds of both were so severe that they were ine ipable of service during the remainder of the war.
CAPTURED.
Lieutenant William Tyson, captured in Georgia. Bailey, M., captured in Georgia.
Braswell, D., Brewster, W .,- Burton, R., captured in Georgia . Cavanaugh, W . B., Crowder, Jolin. Eakin, T., captured in Georgia.
Flowers, W., captured in Georgia. Gardner, A., captured twice in Georgia. Goodloe, James, captured in Georgia Harvey, J , captured in Georgia Harper, R , captured Georgia Hogan, John, captured in Georgia Ilumes, B., captured in Georgia Leavell, John, captured in Tennessee Lamb, J., captured in Georgia . Lorance, John, captured in Georgia MeDaniels, S.,
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Myers, John, Muse, Ben., captured in Georgi t. Owens, E., Priestly, W .,-
Sample, D., captured in Alabama.
Sherod, B., captured in Georgia.
Sirene, G., captured in Alabama.
Simmons, B. F., captured in Alabama.
Tyson, J., captured in Georgia .
Williamson, T. T. J., captured in Tennessee. Total, 20.
CAPTURED AND ESCAPED.
Lieutenant Wm. Tyson.
Myers, John.
Braz well, D.
Owens, E.
Burton, R.
Priestly, W.
Brewster, W.
Sample, D.
Cavanah, W. B.
Sherod, B.
Lamb, J. .
Lorance, John .
MeDaniels, S.
Simmons, B. F. Sirene, S.
Williamson, T. T. J.
Total, 16.
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ARTICLE II.
EAST MISSISSIPPI TIMES, September 15th, 1882.]
Harvey's Scouts.
From Vol. II, Claiborne's History of Mississippi -Advance Sheets.
Gen. Joseph E. Johnson, a man not addicted to super- -Jatives, speaks very highly of this band of partisans .* In the Georgia campaign it operated chiefly in the rear, and on the flanks of Sherman, who compares it to "a nest of yellow jackets continually buzzing about my trains, and stinging severely when I attempted to drive them away." Gen Steven D. Lee, very high authority, writes that, "they were everywhere conspicuous for activity, enterprise, persistence and intrepidity."
These are strong credentials. The command was com- posed of the best materials, and they went without a murmer, wherever the emergency demanded, and freely shed their blood in Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi. Our own people here at home, knew them best and loved them most. They knew that when Har- vey and his men were about, they had little to apprehend from the raids of the enemy, or from those itinerant bands-the curse of all civil wars -that follow on the flanks of both armies to plunder and murder the unpro- tected and infirm. The jayhawkers pillaged wherever they penetrated, and outraged humanity without regard to age or sex. To protect communities from the scoun- dreis was a special duty of the scouts. They were fa- milliar with every by-path between Vicksburg and Natchez, and from Brandon to Yazoo City, and manifes- ted a ubiquity and promptitude almost miraculous.
The scouts consisted originally of twenty-five men, se- lected from Gen. Wirt Adams' regiment of cavalry, con-
* Narralive of Campaigns.
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fided to Capt. Harvey for special service. Having soon demonstrated his activity, audacity and aptitude for this particular line of duty, his command was increased to forty men, all carefully picked from Adams' and Ballen- tine's cavalry, and from the twenty-eighth Mississippi, and with the stipulation that they were to remain per- manently under his command. They came from various Southern States, but were chiefly from Mississippi-from different counties, the majority from Madison, where Capt. Harvey resided.
Their battle-flag was of red and blue silk, richly fringed with gold-made and presented by Miss Alice and Miss Ellen Watson, of Claiborne county, of the distinguished family of that name. It witnessed many deeds of gal- lantry-never one of inhumanity or treachery, and is still preserved in the Harvey family as an invaluable memorial.
A part of the command was constantly on the scout for information. But the Captain made it a rule to keep always on hand, some thirty men, to move together as emergencies occurred. With these, he was generally able, by an unexpected onslaught to "tear down every- thing before him" unless where, sometimes, as the boys would say, "he cut off too large a slice," and then he always made good his retreat, fighting so desperately that they never followed him far. Some of the hardest fighting in the war, some of the most brilliant passages of arms, transpired when this intrepid officer and his handful of hero's were falling back before overwhelming numbers.
They were armed with Spenser rifles, (short guns that repeat eight - times) and two pistols each that carried six charges.
Thus each man had twenty shots, and the Spenser rifles could be reloaded on the run. The sabre was generally discarded, because they were in the way when a soldier dismounted.
Harvey's scouts had four distinct kinds of duty to per- form.
1st. Secret service scouting for information. Gener- ally two went together-sometimes only one. The second man was sent to give assistance in case of one being woun- ded, and likewise, on occasions, to halt in charge of the horses, while the other made his reconnoisance on foot.
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These men were not expected to fight. The order was to get the information speedily and quietly as possible, and report to the Captain, avoiding all collisions.
2nd. Then there was an important and hazardous ser- vice in the seizure of the enemies couriers, and courier lines for information, and to interrupt their communica- tions. This was effected by slipping in between com- mands and capturing or killing the couriers en route for other posts of commands.
3rd. There was a service known as squad scouting. when 10 or 15 men, according to circumstances, were sent out under a lieutenant or some non-commissioned officer who could be relied upon to accomplish the object in view, if possible. With each scout of this kind, there was like- wise usually an old, well-tried special scout, perfectly fa- miliar with the ground, and who knew how to extricate the squad if entangled by unexpected outposts or other impediments. The "boys" on these occasions would say that the "officer in command went along to get them in a tight place, and the other went along to get them out of it." And it sometimes happened that when their leader had carried them into a dangerous position to gain impor- tant information, he would call on his trusty old scout to extricate them, and then for the emergency pass over to him the command. On such duty as this it was expected that every scouting party we fell in with should be promptly attacked, and our parties had frequent conflicts.
4th. These expeditions however, were merely incident- al and collateral, so to speak, to the main service in which Capt. Harvey personally engaged. This demanded general- ly the entire strength of the command, which he kept well in hand, and always in perfect fighting trim. His pro- gramme was to reconnoitre every position and every force moving or operating within range, and never to halt till he struck it. He moved very rapidly, and would often strike a large command front, flank and rear in less than 24 hours, and be able to report to our nearest brigade or division commander the strength of the enemy's cavalry, and infantry, supply wagons, ambulances, artillery, name of the commanding officer, objective point, &c.
We will now illustrate the several scouting specialties by a few examples. During the Georgia campaign, (1864) Robert Hooks, an expert, was on a scout alone. Strik- ing the main road he found himself confronting a federal
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trooper scouting, he presumed like himself. Each then saw an enemy between him and his command and it was evident that one must surrender or die. Hooks cried out "surrender !" The other responded "surrender yourself !" and with pistols leveled, they charged on each other. Hook's pistol missed fire. The other fired as he passsed, and Hooks fell with a bullet in his breast. He however soon reported for duty.
On one occasion Lieut. Lee was under cover near the road watching a passing command of cavalry. After they had all passed as he supposed, he dropped back into the road to return to camp with his report. He had taken the precaution before entering the highway to cock his pistol, and carried it in his right hand concealed by his overcoat. He had not proceeded fifty yards when, on a sudden curve in the road, he found himself within fifty steps of a federal officer. They perceived each other at the same moment, and each saw his precarious condition, an enemy in front and an enemy in the rear. Both were equally cool, and seemed to have adopted the same tac- ties. They approached each other at a walk, with no demonstrations of hostility or excitement, and a bystan- der would have thought they were two friends about to have a chat. As they met, the officer instantaneously lev- eled his pistol and said "surrender!" Lee, for a moment thought his chances bad, but a glance showed him that his adversary's pistol WAS NOT COCKED. He immediate- ly fired, and putting spurs to his horse was soon out of sight. It was ascertained next day, that a detachment of the enemy had passed up the road and found the officer severely wounded.
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ARTICLE III.
EAST MISSISSIPPI TIMES, September 22nd, 1882.]
Harvey's Scouts.
From Vol. II, Claibonre's History of Mississippi-Advance Sheets.
In the second branch of scouting, the capture of cour- iers and courier-lines, the officer had to be wide awake. He had to worm in between commands, break up posts, kill sentinels, and seize conriers. To do this was diffi- cult and dangerous. Several points had first to be mas- tered. 1st. The position of the enemy had to be exactly located. 2d. Whether they kept up communications by couriers. 3d. The different routes these couriers pursu- ed, and whether they traveled by night or day; how often these couriers were sent; whether they were attended by a guard; and if so, what was its usual strength.
These points ascertained, the next point was to strike the courier-line unobserved, seize all they could, and get back to the command with all possible dispatch.
During the Georgia campaign, near Stilesboro, several couriers were captured and very important information obtained. Capt. Harvey, with twenty men, under cover of a dark night, penetrated the enemy's camp, seized the couriers as they passed from one corps to another, and made his way out unobserved. The information prov- ing very valuable, the immediate object was to get it to Head Quarters with dispatch and safety. Some of the captured papers could be read; others were in cipher. All that could be read Capt. Harvey confided to the ment- ory of Williamson, one of his shrewdest scouts, who had often passed between hostile commands on the march when there was only an interval of one hundred yards be- tween them. He was ordered to go, with his verbal in- formation, the dangerous ronte- - that is, the shortest ent, without regard to risk, and report to the next confederate general.
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Another man was put in charge of all the captured pa- pers, to report, by a longer and safer route, to the same officers.
When scouting was done by squads or detachments, which generally involved some desperate fighting, often against heavy odds, the peril was greatly increased. It was not the object of a scouting party to fight. The ob- ject was information for the commanding general, and it was the policy to avoid a fight unless it became inevita- ble by sudden contact, and retreat impracticable.
When Gen. Hood was swinging around, in rear of At- lanta, just before he turned his face toward Tennessee, Harvey,s scouts were on duty day and night, reporting the movements of the enemy. One night the scouts struck Etowah river ten miles above Rome, which was then oc- cupied by the invaders. Capt. Harvey had three objects: First, to introduce an intelligent fellow into Rome, to learn what force was there, and whether they were re-enforcing or evacuating. Second, he proposed to tear up the rail- road on the north side of the river, and, if possible, cap- ture a train. Third, to cut the telegraph wire, and thus interrupt Sherman's communications between Rome and Atlanta.
Under cover of night Harvey marched to the river at a point where the railroad ran along the bank; he sent off his two special scouts; wrenched up a number of rails, and took convenient cover to seize the train when it arriv- ed. No train came. The enemy had already, by some means, heard of the break in the way. During the night they sent up and secretly posted a strong detachment of infantry. :
At daylight Harvey determined to send over a sergeant and four men to cut the telegraph wire, and on their return to withdraw. The party entered a rough float, and when within twenty yards of the northern bank, the Federal infantry, concealed in a thicket, opened fire upon them. One man was killed, and the sergeant, who was standing up, was shot through the thigh, and fell into the river; He however contrived to catch the gunwale of the boat, as it was being turned toward the southern shore. The enemy poured in their fire, splintering the boat and twice wounding Corporal Portwood and killing J. Catlett, a brave and gallant man. Meanwhile Capt. Harvey open-
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ed on the federal force, and under his fire the party in the boat effected their escape.
When Major Muldrow's squadron of Wirt Adams' cav- alry made their gallant charge at Champion Hill, led by the Major in person, it happened that a squad of Har- vey's men were reconnoitering the enemy at the point where this charge was made. They at once fell in, and took part in the attack
During Sherman's raid on Meridian, Thomas Field was alone, on a scout near Hillsboro. Finding that a fight must take place with the advance guard, he pressed his way to the front, distinguished himself by his impetuous valor, and was left dead where he fought.
On another occasion John Morrow was scouting around the enemy, when a Texas Regiment came up and prepar- ed for a charge. Hepromptly took position at the front, and while in the act of shooting his adversary, was shot dead. This brave fellow was a mere boy, but a lion in battle.
ARTICLE IV.
EAST MISSISSIPPI TIMES, September 29th, 1882.]
Harvey's Scouts.
From Vol. II, Claiborne's History of Mississippi -Advance Sheets.
When Gen. Sherman invaded Atlanta, Capt. Harvey was opererating in his rear. After an exhaustive march of four days, he struck the ralroad far in the rear of At- lanta. They reached it, after riding all night, about day- break. They hitched their horses to a fence that was ov- errun with vines and briars, that concealed those on one side of the fence from those on the other side. This fence struck the railroad at right angles. The horses were tied up. The fence ran some 150 yards from the railroad. The scouts went down the railroad, and concealed themselves behind another fence that ran immediately down the rail- road-a portion of which was broken up so as to throw
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off a passing train. To such dread expedients were the weaker party compelled to resort? Their country invad- ed by an overwhelming army, their strongest defenses seized, their dwellings and towns burned, their planta- tions devastated and their defenders slain, their slaves, whom they held under the guarantees of the constitution, forcibly emancipated and armed and officered to make war upon them-is it surprising that, in the agony of de- spair, they should resort to instrumentalities condemned by the rules of civilized warfare? War, of itself, under any pretext, is in violation of all Christian teaching; yet Christian nations engage in it, and are excused upon the plea of necessity. And thus, and thus only, can be ex- cused these clandestine attacks on trains and steamers, involving the innocent with the guilty.
About 10 A. M. Harvey's men, completely in ambuscade, discovered a detachment of infantry marching down the railroad, under a lieutenant. The Captain desired to se- cure them withouta fight, as the nearest federal post was only one mile off. So he ordered a corporal who was posted nearest the approaching federals, to rise up when they got opposite him and demand their immediate sur- render-no man to fire unless the enemy began it. When the federals reached the proper point, the corporal rose and called out "Surrender!" To this the federals answer- ed by preparing for action. Our men being instantane- ously prepared, poured in a general volley, and the whole federal command was killed, wounded or captured. The prisoners were sent immediately where our horses were picketed.
Knowing that we would soon be pursued Capt. Harvey gave orders to tear up the railroad, so as to give us time to get away.' While we were thus engaged he sang out "mount!" As we leaped from the break just made, we saw on the other side of the fence, opposite where we had picketed our horses, and some 60 yards from the horses, a line of infantry emerging from a dense thicket and ad- vaneing in the order of battle. As we made for our hors- es, the Captain in the lead, the federals opened a heavy, rolling fire, advancing all the while. We were not per- mitted to fire; one object was to save our horses, that were between the enemy and nearer to him than to us. We pressed forward under fire, mounted and made off for the nearest shelter, without halting to say good bye.
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At another time, just before Hood wheeled his army around for the Tennessee campaign, Capt Harvey was or- dered, with all possible dispatch, to strike the railroad as near Atlanta as practicable, and ascertain if Sherman was moving his infantry, and to report his movements generally. Much hazard was incurred, but the informa- tion wanted was sent to Gen. Hood. Before retiring, Capt. Harvey concluded to cut the railroad if practicable. He soon ascertained, however, that it was guarded by cavalry that far outnumbered his command, and he determined to retreat. The enemy, however, had the curiosity to know who Harvey was, what he was up to, and the strength of his command; so they followed his trail, with a strong column of cavalry, under a very active officer. Capt. Har- vey threw out a strong rear guard, under an experienced lieutenant. This guard soon discovered that it would be overpowered, and that the enemy were making arrange- ments for a charge. Capt. Harvey, with the rest of the command, was a quarter of a mile ahead -- the rear guard within about 60 paces of the enemy's front. The sergeant was ordered to report, at full speed, to Capt. Harvey, to prepare for a charge. The Captain coolly turned his col- umn off the road, about 20 yards, and formed it parallel with and fronting the road, pistols drawn and cocked. This had hardly been done when the rear guard came dashing along, firing as they fled-the federals pursuing, and firing as they advanced. The Captain had given the order not to fire until our whole front was covered by the enemy, and to follow him in the charge. On came the federal cavalry, looking neither to the right nor to the left- thundering after our retreating rear gnard, and shouting as they came. Just as they covered our front, when each of our boys could single out his man, Harvey gave the word "Fire!" We poured in a deadly volley. The col- umn staggered, doubled up, scattered and rolled back like a billow that has surged against a rock, showering its spray on all sides and suddenly disappearing. We pursued the broken detachments, shooting right and left. giving no quarter except to those who surrendered. Capt. Harvey then rapidly drew off his command. From these examples, a proper conception may be formed of the char- acter of the Captain and his command, and the danger- ous but important services they were expected to render. The Captain would have none but reliable men about
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